Mar 13, 2026 · executive_order
Trump invokes Defense Production Act to restart California Sable pipeline
Energy Secretary Chris Wright on March 13, 2026, directed Sable Offshore Corp. to restore operations of the Santa Ynez Unit and pipeline off Santa Barbara, invoking the Defense Production Act and citing Iran war supply disruption risks. The pipeline had been shut since the 2015 Refugio oil spill and was under a California court injunction barring restart without state approval. Governor Gavin Newsom and Attorney General Rob Bonta filed a federal lawsuit challenging the order as executive overreach. Sable resumed pumping oil on March 16.
Feb 18, 2026 · court_ruling
California leads 13-state lawsuit over $1.2B in canceled energy grants
California Attorney General Rob Bonta co-led a 13-state coalition filing suit in the US District Court for Northern California on February 18, 2026, challenging the Trump administration's termination of energy and infrastructure grants funded by Congress under the Inflation Reduction Act and the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act. California alone lost $1.2 billion, including funding for the ARCHES hydrogen hub program projected to create 200,000 jobs. The lawsuit argued that the administration violated the constitutional separation of powers by impounding congressionally appropriated funds, marking California's 58th lawsuit against the Trump administration.
Feb 11, 2026 · executive_order
Trump signs executive order directing Pentagon to buy coal power
President Trump signed an executive order on February 11, 2026, directing the Department of Defense to enter long-term Power Purchase Agreements with coal-fired power plants to supply military installations and defense facilities. DOE was directed to distribute $175 million to upgrade six coal plants in Kentucky, North Carolina, Ohio, Virginia, and West Virginia, and identified more than three dozen coal plants capable of supplying electricity to military bases. The order framed coal as essential for grid reliability and national security.
Jan 28, 2026 · regulatory_action
Environmental groups challenge DOE order forcing Craig coal plant to stay open
Sierra Club, Environmental Defense Fund, Earthjustice, and Colorado utilities Tri-State Generation and Platte River Power Authority filed challenges on January 28, 2026 to a Department of Energy emergency order that had forced Craig Station Unit 1 to remain operational one day before its scheduled retirement on December 31, 2025. The DOE order invoked a rarely used grid reliability authority to keep the 40-year-old coal unit available for 90 days at the direction of regional grid operators. Neither Craig's co-owners nor state regulators had requested the intervention.
Jan 28, 2026 · executive_order
Trump administration secretly rewrites nuclear safety rules to speed reactor construction
NPR reported on January 28, 2026 that the Department of Energy had secretly rewritten internal safety rules governing experimental nuclear reactors and shared the revised standards with ten private companies in a pilot program, without public notice. The rewritten orders covered safety systems, environmental protections, site security, and accident investigations. The changes were driven by an executive order requiring DOE to approve at least three new reactors by July 4, 2026, and included proposals to strip some worker respiratory and welding safety standards to accelerate construction.
